Unless you intend to host your Web site in-house, which means having a full-time dial-up server running on a high-bandwidth connection to the Internet, your ISP is the practical resource to allow Internet users to access your site quickly at any time.

ISPs offer Internet access and a variety of service packages: most ISPs have inexpensive hosting packages for small sites, and some even offer this as part of their standard service package.

In some cases, Internet service providers set aside portions of their hard-disk space for subscribers’ Web pages that require no domain registration. Most of these limit a hosted Web site to a certain data size. Check this out; it might already be included in your monthly access fee.

If you intend to host your site through a service provider, be sure to clarify the details of your service package:

• How fast is the ISP’s Internet connection?
• What is the data size limit for a hosted Web site?
• Does the ISP support server-side technologies or server extensions that you may want to avail of now, or in the future?
• How will your Web content be published to the ISP’s host server?
• Does the ISP provide or offer other support services that you may avail of, like site usage monitoring, Web-based e-mail, freeware, shareware or demo downloads from an FTP host, member community chat and forums, or member link exchange arrangements?